The Chinese porcelain collection known by the poetic name Meiyintang (Hall Among Rose Beds) is one of the finest and most impressive in private hands.

This third sale dedicated to the collection again makes available a phenomenal range of rare imperial works from the kilns at Jingdezhen, China’s first and foremost porcelain manufacturing centre. Covering imperial porcelains from all major reigns, it includes some of the protagonists of the Yuan (1279-1368), many of the mature masterpieces of the Ming (1368-1644), and a great variety of sophisticated gems of the Qing (1644-1911) dynasty.

One of the most spectacular pieces is the majestic (nearly 60 cm wide) charger of the Yongle period (1403-24), a unique example that is masterfully painted with a long-tailed bird swooping down from a branch laden with lychees to catch an insect. Such freely executed brush paintings, with their careful shading of the cobalt blue, here used particularly for the bird’s plumage, and of course the sheer size of the vessel, reflect China’s blue-and-white porcelain production at its greatest moment.

This collection was formed in Paris in the seventies and in the eighties. More precisely in this extraordinary place in Paris called “Drouot”. As well as from time to time, in large antique fairs around Paris, including the famous “Ham and Antiques Fair” of Chatou where you could either buy food or antiques. However, it was in this incredible Hôtel des Ventes Drouot where most of the pieces of this unique collection were discovered.

Our aesthete was attracted at the first by French Old Master paintings, but soon moved to Chinese works of art. The quality of execution, originality of the designs, variety of materials held a fascination for him, especially in materials like jade, agate, ivory, bamboo but also bronze and gold.

Sotheby’s April 3rd Photographs auction in New York features an exciting range of material from the 19th to 21st centuries. American modernism is represented by an early print of Brett Weston’s Hand and Ear, originally from the collection of photographer and filmmaker LeRoy Robbins. Four impressive Ansel Adams murals, including Mount McKinley and Wonder Lake and White House Ruin, Canyon de Chelly National Monument, are featured, along with other Adams photographs. Ray Metzker’s Tall Grove of Nudes, a unique work composed of 140 individual photographs mounted together, is a superb example from his Composites series. Diane Arbus’s A Box of Ten Photographs, the photographer’s only portfolio, features a myriad of her most iconic and sought-after images. Larry Clark’s Billy Mann, perhaps the most famous image from his landmark Tulsa series, is offered as an early, oversized print. An arresting mural-sized print of Peter Beard’s Heart Attack City presents an astonishing array of collage and photographic elements.

WESTHAMPTON, N.Y. – Grey Flannel Auctions’ Winter Classic auction held live at the Sports Legends Museum at Camden Yards in Baltimore was a smashing success, grossing $1,187,599 and achieving a 100% sell-through rate. The Feb. 11 auction featuring 107 lots of choice baseball, basketball, football and other professional sports memorabilia chalked up an astonishing average price of almost $11,500 per lot.

The day’s top seller was a 1958 Mickey Mantle New York Yankees game-used flannel road jersey attributed to the World Series of that year.

“This jersey is symbolic and important, not only because it was a World Championship season for the Yankees, but also because Mantle drove in two home runs during that year’s Series,” said Richard E. Russek, president of Grey Flannel Auctions.

The jersey presented all of the essential identifications high-end collectors look for, including an inside collar strip reading “Mantle 1958,” a contemporaneous Wilson manufacturer’s tag with washing instructions and the size “42” imprinted on it, and a letter of authenticity. The shirt was originally sourced from a trainer with the mid-1960s Ft. Lauderdale Yankees Class A affiliate, who, in turn, had obtained the garment from the club’s general manager, Ed Bastian. Entered with a $10,000 reserve, the coveted jersey slammed in a winning bid of $114,000. All prices quoted in this report include 20% buyer’s premium.

Following closely behind the Mantle jersey was a historical basketball treasure documenting Wilt Chamberlain’s 100-point game of March 2, 1962. The package included the official scorer’s score sheet from the Philadelphia Warriors vs. N.Y. Knicks game, an original game program with Chamberlain photo, and a clipped ticket for “Working Press.” Accompanied by a full LOA from James Spence Authentication, whose experts validated the signatures, the well-preserved ephemera selection scored a winning bid of $108,000 – more than 10 times its reserve.

Jerseys from all major sports met with success at the Grey Flannel event. A 1971 Frank Robinson Baltimore Orioles World Series Game 1 game-used and autographed home jersey was bid to $45,000 (reserve $5,000); while a game-used home jersey that New York Islanders center Bryan Trottier wore in Game 5 of the 1981 Stanley Cup Finals made $30,000 (reserve $2,500).

“We’re grateful to all of the consignors and bidders who made our Winter Classic such an exciting event,” said Russek. “We now look forward to our May 30 auction, which contains a classic photo of Babe Ruth taken by Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Nat Fine. This photo is immediately recognizable to all baseball fans. It’s the type of American treasure you’d expect to see in the Smithsonian.”

Sotheby’s is delighted to present the Old Master, Modern & Contemporary Prints on 29th March 2012. This sale will draw together some of the finest exponents of printmaking spanning across five centuries, embodying a variety of styles and techniques.

In the Old Master section, Rembrandt is represented by a particularly strong group, notably with a fine, fourth-state impression of Christ Crucified Between the Two Thieves: ‘The Three Crosses’. Often singled out as the masterpiece of his printed oeuvre, this impression demonstrates Rembrandt’s technical virtuosity and ability to create a dramatic atmosphere and narrative. Also included are Woman at the Bath with a Hat Beside Her,The Descent from the Cross by Torchlight and a ‘black sleeve’ impression of La Petite Tombe. Additionally, a ‘Basan receuil’ published by H. L. Basan amasses over 80 etchings by Rembrandt. Works by Albrecht Dürer, William Blake and After Bosch are also included, among others artists.

The Modern section comprises a vibrant group of British prints by C. R. W. Nevinson, Cyril Power and Sybil Andrews. These eye-catching prints capture an important moment in time: the inter-war period in Britain. This group includes Divertissement and The Runners by Cyril Power, Sledgehammers by Sybil Andrews, The Road from Arras to Bapaume and Building Aircraft: Banking at 4000 Feet by C. R. W. Nevinson. These dynamic images embody the movement, noise and atmosphere of this era in British history and mark a significant chapter in the history of British printmaking.